2 Questions. Thumb Sucking and Public Toilet Potty Training

Hi-

My daughter was a thumbsucker and we tried EVERYTHING!! We tried the solution that you paint on nails, nope she licked it off and told me that her nails tasted funny! We tried the sock, she just sucked her thumb through the sock! In 3rd grade we worked w/ her dentish and put an appliance in the roof of her mouth that has spikes on it. It is a deterant and also maked it so they can't get suction. Well she didn't suck her thumb but played with the devise. She ended up breaking it twice. So we then tried something called a Thumbguard and it WORKED!!!! It's a plastic shield that goes over the thumb and it tied on at the wrist w/ brightly colored wristbands. Here is the website through Amazon if you are interested. http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=thumb+guard...

Good luck. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Stephanie

Luckily, most preschool places have smaller toilets. My son is 4 and he is potty trained but won't use public bathrooms either. In fact, i just put him in training pants when we go out b/c i can't help hi, get on the big toilet and hold my 2 year old at the same time.

I'm sure the preschool staff is used to helping younger kids with going to the bathroom.

One reason why he doesn't like public restrooms also is because they are unfamiliar. At his preschool, he will become more familiar and comfortable there so he will probably go after a while.

Ok, first, the thumb...my daughter was exactly the same. By 5, she was sucking her thumb just when she was bored or tired, not usually in public, but still I thought it was time to stop. I told her that kids in school might make fun of her for it when she went to K, (she wasn't in Pre), but she wasn't too concerned. I continued my efforts to discourage it, including warning her about crooked teeth, and it took about 4 months or so into K before she finally came around. We had one last talk that night about how sometimes things that make us feel good are not good for us, and the examples of her brother who used to bite his nails and her dad who used to play video games too much. She got the point, struggled a little to fall asleep that night without the thumb, but was fine after that. Try not to stress too much about it, she'll probably grow out of it within the school year.

And you son...one suggestion, they have these hard plastic potty seats that fold up...their flat and you just unfold them and set them on top of a regular seat. They come in a large ziplock type bag. I used to carry one around on long days when my kids were little to cover the public toilet seats so I didn't have to try to lift them up, because they could never go like that. Maybe if you get one of those and even use it at home sometimes so he's used to it, then take it with you when you go out...it will be like it's "his" seat he gets to use everywhere. He could probably even take it to Preschool with him. Then public toilets might not seem so foreign to him, because he'll have his seat. It's possible too that sometimes in our efforts to explain to them that public seats are dirty and they can't just sit on them like normal, sometimes they develop a fear of them. Happened to my friend's daughter. So maybe the little folding seat would help. You can get them at Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, lots of places.

I would just be honest and say that kids can tease and be mean sometimes. If she doesn't like being called a baby she needs to stop sucking her thumb in school. Then it is not about a power struggle, she can make her choice. In the meantime try and get her to limit the thumb sucking (like just when she goes to sleep).

My son is 4 and he did get used to public bathrooms after a while. We got a portable potty that could fold out to be a ring on a larger toilet. Once he got tall enough to pee standing up in a full size toilet, public bathrooms got a lot easier to deal with. At school he got used to the bathroom after I had him use it a few times (maybe as much as 6) when I was there to pick him up.

as far as the thumb sucking goes, without any upheavals in her life your daughter will probably stop soon - peer pressure is a really good way to get it stopped, and she's already noticing other kids are singling her out because of it. i bet if you're patient, it will happen less and less. just hang in there. don't sweat it too bad until she does start getting a loose tooth.

as far as the public potty goes, omg i so feel your pain! my son is 3 1/2 and he HATES walmart potties - the automatic flushers terrify him, the automatic sinks freak him out, and IF i get him to that point - the air dryers don't even stand a chance. it just depends on how bad he has to go - and if i can convince him "these are nice potties, babe". ugh! i hate trying to "trick" him but i admit i do try on occasion. also i have waited to flush till he was out of the stall (IF they aren't the automatic kind, just the really loud ones), and i carry hand sanitizer. i just keep hoping he'll figure out they don't hurt him and get past his fear. our favorites are the little mom and pop restaurants that have bathrooms basically like a home bathroom lol. i don't know what to tell you girl, i wish i had advice. but i bet the longer he is potty trained, the less he'll want to be wet. as far as the in between, i don't think it's the end of the world to put him in a pullup if you're going to, say, spend the morning at the mall or something. hang in there, he'll get it - hopefully soon!

I will address the potty training question: He would probably be more apt to go in a public toilet if you treated them just like your own bathroom. From what you described, it sounds like he has a "complex" about public restrooms. My MIL is like this too, and she gave my nephew really bad feelings about public restrooms (this was extremely detrimental because he has a digestive condition that requires him to poop very often). I NEVER let her take my kids to the public restroom because I knew she would freak them out about "diseases" that they would catch if they touched anything. If you are that worried, just carry antibacterial wipes with you and clean off the seat before he goes. I have found that kids (and most adults) don't have the dexterity to use those paper butt-gasket things that are offered in public bathrooms with any positive effect. My nephew would try and try to adjust it correctly and in the meantime have an accident right there! After you clean the seat, let him proceed as he would at home and make sure he washes his hands really well afterward. Make sure that he has the impression that the bathroom at school is just like the one at home (if you are uncomfortable about the cleaning practices of the school, discuss it with the teachers) so he call feel comfortable about using the school bathroom. He is only having a hard time because he needs to come up with a new way to pee "on the road" than at home.

The preschool will have a schedule listing potty times. They will take all of the children to the bathroom at specified times and will take any child who asks to go when he asks. Some workers are experienced and will even notice when a child is showing signs that he needs to go. If he's fully potty trained at home, he's ready for preschool.

Preschool expects accidents. They will ask you to bring a change of clothing just for that purpose.

Using the toilet at preschool is all together different than using a public restroom. He'll get used to it quickly. The preschool bathroom will quickly become just like his home bathroom to him.

My son was a thumb sucker, what finally worked to get him to stop was wearing socks on his hands. I know it sounds strange, but at age 4 we found it was more of an unconscious thing he just did, so wearing socks on his hands at night stopped it. After about 4 nights the urge was gone and he never sucked his thumb again.

As for the potty, just keep trying and encouraging him. Try to go out more often and just bring an extra pair of pants just in case. Practice makes perfect.

I wouldn't worry about your daughter sucking her thumb...yet. Most Kindergarten students are accepting of thumb suckers but as the year goes on they will be tougher. Hopefully by then she will have stopped on her own.

If your son is afraid of a certain toilets then you need to expose them, to him more often. This is how we conquer our fears. If you avoid these issues (toilets, sounds, etc.) then many children carry these fears into adulthood, but it should be done in a very loving, calm way.

Hello for your daughter there is a product that you paint on finger nails it tastes awful/ It works.
For your son, there sell padded training pants there are 100% cotton. Also try try make the washroom like home and do rush him. I put a towel on the bowl for my grandson, he is younger than your son, if he gets cold he can not go. And then after he usually goes about three times before he is really done.
Good luck! Have you tried a game like sink the boat, place one sheet toilet paper in bowl, then have him aim and shoot. Most boys like this one game.